The Charity Commission has said it will review concerns raised about the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) after initially refusing to investigate the think tank.
In March, the Good Law Project (GLP), four cross-party politicians and a former member of the Charity Commission board urged the regulator to investigate the IEA over possible breaches of charity law.
They accused the think tank of promoting “extreme views”, falling “foul of regulations around political campaigning and educational research” and having “inappropriate links with openly political offshoot organisations”.
In response, the commission said it had not identified concerns that the IEA was acting outside of its objects or published guidance and decided that no action was needed.
In May, the GLP, on behalf of the complainants, submitted a formal complaint to the commission, requesting it to reconsider its decision.
Last week, the commission confirmed that it had “determined a need to re-conduct an assessment of the information provided in the GLP’s letters dated 13 March and 10 May” to “assess whether or not there are any issues which require regulatory engagement or action”.
‘These serious issues deserve serious assessment’
Andrew Purkis, former board member at the commission, said the regulator’s “previous abrupt dismissal fell below the standards of good regulation that the sector and the public have a right to expect”.
He told Civil Society: “It’s good that the Charity Commission has now decided to consider this complaint properly.
“It’s a carefully argued case about whether this organisation’s purpose is exclusively charitable (and not partly political), whether it’s abiding by the commission’s guidelines on the nature and practice of charitable education (rather than promoting a controversial viewpoint), and whether connected bodies are as separate from the charity as they’re supposed to be.
“These serious issues deserve serious assessment by the regulator. This isn’t about think tanks generally, which must not be lumped together, but about this particular one.”
GLP: ‘We welcome the regulator’s U-turn’
GLP’s director Jolyon Maugham said: “When we complained, the Charity Commission refused to investigate and pulled the guidance that prompted our complaint.
“We were pretty shocked that our extensive and serious concerns about the IEA were dismissed out of hand.
“It shouldn’t have taken the threat of legal proceedings to force the Charity Commission to do its job, but we welcome the regulator’s u-turn and decision to revisit the complaint.
“It must now properly engage with the 19 pages of evidence about the IEA we submitted back in March alongside a former Charity Commission board member and four cross-party politicians.”
A Charity Commission spokesperson told Civil Society: “An internal review has determined a need to reconduct an assessment into complaints made about the IEA.
“The assessment against our published risk framework will now be reconducted to assess whether or not there are any issues which require regulatory engagement or action.
“The decision review hasn’t assessed the substance of concerns raised earlier this year nor made any findings.”
IEA: Complaint is ‘political and vexatious’
In response, the IEA said it agreed with comments made by the regulator in March that “some have sought to co-opt the Charity Commission into campaigns against think tanks with which they disagree”.
A spokesperson told Civil Society: “In our view, the GLP’s complaint is political and vexatious.
“It’s rooted in prior complaints that the regulator has already ruled on – generally in the IEA’s favour – as well as opposition to our educational mission.
“We’re confident that this re-evaluation will find against the GLP again. If anything, this news serves to highlight the Charity Commission’s original concern about abuse of due process by lawfare groups.”
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